Alice Seeley Harris’ photographs of the Free State Congo in the 1900s revealed the horror of colonial violence and exploitation to the world. Our exhibition Brutal Exposure: the Congo at the International Slavery Museum highlights how these images were used to overthrow King Leopold II’s brutal regime. Over a century after Alice took these photographs, students in Kansas have been inspired by her story and have developed a wonderful project acknowledging her work. One of the students tells us more…

“My name is Avery Stratton. I am a senior at Washburn Rural High School in Topeka, Kansas, in the United States. A couple of my peers and I are currently working on an entry for the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes Project competition in Fort Scott, Kansas, which is an effort to highlight individuals who have demonstrated immense courage and compassion in the past who may have not received the recognition they deserve

Alexis Balaun, one of our team members, discovered Alice Seeley Harris while watching a documentary on the Congo. Alice’s heart-wrenching photos were showcased, but not much was said about the person behind the camera. Intrigued by this brave woman, Alexis presented her to our group and we knew that Alice would make the perfect focus for our project.

Upon further investigation, we found the International Slavery Museum’s exhibition ‘Brutal Exposure’, which proved to be a great resource for our project. We were surprised by the coincidence of our discovery and the museum exhibition’s opening. We have decided to showcase Alice’s story in a documentary setting.

The goal of our work is to shed light on Alice’s story and give her the commendation that her bravery so very much deserves. What’s sad about Alice’s story, and the reason why we chose to honour her, is the fact that Alice never truly received the credit that she deserved for her humanitarian efforts.

One of the most unique aspects of this project is the establishment of international contacts. Last month, we had the opportunity to host an author visit at our high school for Judy Pollard Smith, an author based out of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, who spent 9 years researching Alice and even wrote a creative, non-fiction book titled ‘Don’t Call Me Lady: The Journey of Lady Alice Seeley Harris’. Judy and our group gave multiple presentations in the school library that students and faculty were invited to attend. Judy talked about her research process, Alice’s impact on her, and in a workshop style, led the students through a creative writing and photo analysis activity. Another contact we’ve made is Rebecca Seeley Harris, who is the great-granddaughter of Alice Seeley Harris. A few weeks ago, we were able to Skype with Rebecca. Both of these women have been instrumental in our project, and it’s been an amazing opportunity to be able to talk with people all over the world.

This project has been unlike anything that I’ve ever been a part of. Unsung heroes are humble and altruistic; they aren’t motivated by superficial desires, they truly have a desire to help others. I really liked the idea of researching someone who has done something courageous in the past but hasn’t received recognition for it. I think that a lot of students today only associate true heroism with fame and fortune, but this project encourages students to think otherwise. I hope that people are inspired by Alice’s bravery like I was. I really do feel as if this project has the potential to make a difference. If anything, Alice’s amazing work is recognized and she is commended for her bravery.

]]>http://blog.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/2015/05/students-honour-alice-seeley-harris-as-an-unsung-hero/feed/2Brutal Exposure reviewed by Vava Tampahttp://blog.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/2015/04/brutal-exposure-reviewed-by-vava-tampa/
Mon, 13 Apr 2015 09:30:47 +0000http://blog.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/?p=7750There are less than two months left to visit our powerful exhibition Brutal Exposure: the Congo at the International Slavery Museum. Vava Tampa, founder of Save the Congo and chair of the Morel Prize, has given his thoughts on the display:

“Brutal Exposure: the Congo at Liverpool’s International Slavery Museum is notable for many things. One of the masterpieces at the heart of this brilliantly staged installation is a still, sanitised portrait of a Congolese man Lomboto.

Simple and sublime, Lomboto’s portrait, which is also the exhibition’s lead image – and one of the few images that became iconic for colonial brutality – fills the high white wall of the exhibition’s entrance space, a small charismatic room on one of Liverpool’s defunct docks which once had a monopoly on all transport of cargo to and from the Congo.

From a distant, its large, eye-catching size looks intriguing, even inviting for your eyes to feast on – but this tainted poetic outlook is soon eclipsed by Lomboto’s distressing gaze. It’s a difficult sight to forget. He stands upright, half covered with his disfigured hand expressively placed for a public display, and stares absorbingly deep and directly onto his audience, with a patina of serenity that feels awkwardly more like a warning to those thinking of taking another step past him that: this is not a pedantic exercise into history.

Indeed, this installation, the first ever photographic installation in support of human rights, is not for those with fragile heart – not the least because this is the first ever full-scale exhibition that attempts to expose the scale and scope of King Leopold’s brutality in Congo; a story that reads like a fictional novel from abolitionists in which death, brutality and exploitation all erupt to make their presence felt with such confidence and poignancy in an attempt to harness the mood of 19th century parliamentarians, religious leaders and members of the public to take a stand against colonial brutality in some far corners of the world. That story is brilliantly told in George Washington Williams’s letter, Mark Twain’s ‘King Leopold’s Soliloquy’, Joseph Conrad’s ‘Heart of Darkness’, Sir Conan Doyle’s ‘The Crime of the Congo’, ED Morel’s ‘Red Rubber’ and in Adam Hochschild’s ‘King Leopold’s Ghost’.

But what this exhibition does, which books often fail, is that it shines a light – without saying so – on the strength of human spirit: the refusal to turn a blind eye by the Somerset–born missionary Alice who, despite considerable censorship and the constant threat posed by the King’s army, ‘Force Publique’, dreamt up improbable but insightful ways (long before the arrival of photojournalism) to give the world and history a glimpse of the brutality used to gain access and control of Congo’s richness at the turn of the last century.

Wild rubber was coltan of that time, which Europe had a capacious appetite for. And Congo, which had been given to King Leopold as his private property at the ‘Die Kongokonferenz’ in Berlin 130 years ago this year, had the misfortune of having the only forest in the world with wild rubber. Tapping wild rubber, however, was a difficult job, and Leopold’s agents used cruel and brutal tactics to ensure the native gather rubber for the King. Any Congolese man who failed saw his wife kidnapped, those who resisted had their hands chopped, those who fought back were killed and rebellious village were razed to the ground. And by 1908 when the British campaigner ED Morel managed to sway Britain to twist Leopold’s arms into giving up his private property, an estimated 10 million Congolese had been killed in the space of 25 years.

This is what makes Alice Seeley Harris’s pictures deeply poignant, and personal. From the first piece of what this show calls ‘Brutal Exposure: The Congo’ to the amplified 19th century lecture poster, provocatively titled ‘Congo Atrocities’ – and behind which seats The Harris Lantern Slide Show, which became the lifeblood of the Congo campaign, and beside which is a large picture of Alice standing in her Victorian long dress within a mountain pile of Congolese children to other dozens of snapshot-sized photo of locals – many of which have been rarely exhibited but all reproduced anew, and stuck seemingly casually to the wall, we see Congo through Alice’s eyes; the crimes she witnessed and the victims she met.

Standing before some of the pictures, more than 100 years after they were taken, trying to fathom how was it possible that when slavery was abolished in the United States and across the Caribbean, in Congo, as recent as 1908, it was still being practiced widely and publicly, is hauntingly painful. But if the exhibition’s title suggests that this brutality is being exposed, then it misleads. For, even now, more than 100 years after Leopold, countless continue to be killed, raped and brutalised every day by local and foreign armed groups for access and control of minerals destined to sell in London, Paris, Washington and elsewhere.”

]]>MAMA perfomance at the International Slavery Museumhttp://blog.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/2014/05/mama-perfomance-at-the-international-slavery-museum/
Thu, 08 May 2014 08:24:33 +0000http://blog.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/?p=5005

We’re really lucky to be welcoming the MAMA choir to perform at the International Slavery Museum on 10 May. Here are a few words from the group to explain what they stand for;

“We are MAMA, migrant artists mutual aid, an organization that brings together migrants in crisis.We come together in a group of mainly women asylum seekers who feel themselves under threat of removal from the UK. Together we try to explore options of campaigning, i.e. highlighting some of the injustices of the UK asylum system, and we give each other support and solidarity.

We will be coming to the International Slavery Museum on Saturday 10 May at 2pm for a performance of poetry and song. The idea is to explore the link between the colonial practices as highlighted in the museum, and especially the new exhibition Brutal Exposure: the Congo, and modern day treatment of people in the asylum system. Some of our group’s members are Congolese and we are preparing for anti-deportation campaigns in light of increased pressure on people from the Democratic Republic of Congo by the Home Office at the moment.

We have been getting ready for our performance by trying to learn some new songs. In our research we came across amazing personalities such as Miriam Makeba, who was born in South Africa but exiled for more than 30 years because of the attention she brought to the Apartheid regime on a world stage. We will be singing her famous song ‘Malaika’. Here is what she told the British Times in an interview:

“I’m not a political singer… I don’t know what the word means. People think I consciously decided to tell the world what was happening in South Africa. No! I was singing about my life, and in South Africa we always sang about what was happening to us – especially the things that hurt us.”

We are also singing ‘Dominique’, a very popular French song which everyone in the group remembered from their childhood. And then there is ‘Mbele mama’, a song which is a pure worship of the mother, and ‘Shalom Chaverim’, peace be with you. We were singing these songs during our performance of the Vagina Monologues two months ago.”

“It is a blessing to be Congolese and nobody can become Congolese by might, by greed or by power! There has never been an ethnic conflict in DRC. We have lived with refugees from Rwanda, Angola, for years, with respect and tolerance all our lives and I still have friends to date despite the war.

The current conflict in Congo is a modern slavery lead by the international businesses needs for diamonds for jewellery, Cobalt for western weaponry, copper for their industry and especially of Coltan for iPhones, Blackberrys, laptop computers and their missiles. The demands for these material continue to destabilise my country and gloss over or play down our suffering in the interests of business.

Perpetrators are known, British firms which are involved were named and shamed, I was at some meetings in 2001. No further actions were taken to date. The international community has turned blind eyes. For them I think Congo is a no man’s land, where anybody can go and fill their dirty need of resources.

I like Liverpool because of its cosmopolitan aspect, the warmth of its people. When I first came to Liverpool, I was lost on my way to the police station and a stranger took time to approach me and direct me. He called me love and I felt that I was still a person and that some people could see me when I was walking to nowhere. This person gave me hope to carry on my journey. He reminded me of my country where we greet strangers, we offer them water, food and without asking questions…. I felt home that day. I wish I could see him again!!

It is a real pain to leave far from your loved ones, your friends and family. To settle in a country where you have no roots, no link. My life has been different since (language limitation, unpredictable weather, different culture), I was lost when I came here.

Although I am catching up now, it is still difficult when I look back to the standard of life I had, and my position now, my stomach crumbles, but I can’t help it! I have learnt to live with it. May be one day, I will go home; I am grieving for my home country and other forms of distress linked to the migration; I always have acute feelings of loss; of my homes, my social status, friends, relatives, families and familiar communities, places of leisure. I was in hospital for 2 weeks depression and low self-esteem as a result of the loss and the standard of leaving as an asylum seeker; The way I was treated in general; I was about to end my days here in Liverpool.

Now my job status, qualification gap and salary level are my problems – I have tried to move jobs but job offers are always worse than expected – I am unable to get a job that reflects my wealth of experience and skills. I am frustrated to be stranded in a low-skilled, low paid job. Although I have a CMI Strategic Management and Leadership qualification, I think may be employers look at my name and don’t consider what I can offer to their organisation. They discriminate me against my background and deny me the right to get a better job. These are my frustrations and I hope that this will change.”

Rebecca Seeley Harris said she felt very proud of her pioneering great grandmother Alice when she visited the Brutal Exposure exhibition

Marilyn Monroe famously claimed “Give a girl the right shoes, and she can conquer the world”. However, two exhibitions that have opened recently on Liverpool’s waterfront show that if you give a girl a camera then she can change the world.

Brutal Exposure: the Congo at the International Slavery Museum features photographs taken by Alice Seeley Harris when she and her husband were working as missionaries in the Congo Free State in the early 1900s. They became active human rights campaigners after witnessing first hand the atrocities carried out in the name of King Leopold II.

Alice’s photographs revealed to the world the shocking truth of exploitation, murder and slavery in the Congo. The author Mark Twain described her Kodak Brownie camera as the only witness that King Leopold couldn’t bribe. Her arresting images illustrated a lecture that toured Europe and the US to raise public and political awareness. This was probably the first photographic campaign in support of human rights, and led to Alice becoming a director of the Anti-Slavery Society, later Anti-Slavery International.

This determination and spirit is also evident in the work of Sicilian photographer Letizia Battaglia, who fought to expose the corruption of the Mafia in the 1970s and 80s. Her photographs can be seen in the exhibition Breaking the Code of Silence at the Open Eye Gallery. At a talk on the eve of the exhibition opening Letizia described how, even when she felt scared and sickened by the scenes of violence around her, she still felt compelled to take photographs in order to show the world what was happening in her beloved city of Palermo. A passionate woman, she said that she would always stay and fight for her little part of the world, and said that if everyone did the same then real change could be possible.

The charity Women for Women International works with socially excluded women in eight countries where war and conflict have devastated lives and communities, including eastern Congo. Last week Mukonondo’s story of how they changed her life was featured on the blog. In the Brutal Exposure exhibition’s resource area you can see a short film of a photographic project that Women for Women International worked on with women in the eastern Congo, in which they portray their dreams and aspirations. A simple but powerful idea, when you realise that the things they dream of – like running water, an education and food for their children, or the right to live in peace – are things that most of us take for granted.

Women for Women International support women affected by the conflict in eastern Congo

To celebrate International Women’s Day, Women for Women International will be holding a free talk at the International Slavery Museum about their work with the families and communities that have been devastated by the conflict in eastern Congo. They will also show a short film telling some of the stories of the women they serve.

Mukonondo is one of many women who has received help from the charity. She shares her journey with us here:

“I am a 26-year-old married mother of five children, including 4 boys and one girl. Growing up, my family was very poor. My father was unemployed, and my mother cultivated land for other people. My mother had 12 children, including myself, but six of my older siblings died. Because my parents could not afford tuition fees for me, I stopped school after 4th grade. Instead, I worked to cultivate my family’s fields.

I married my husband, Habamungu, ten years ago. At the time, I was completely financially dependent on him, and I did not earn an income on my own. We barely had enough money for our family’s needs, and life became harder when I started having children. I had no idea how to manage household finances.

In September 2012, one of my neighbors told me that Women for Women International was enrolling new program participants in our community. She had recently started the program, and I knew another woman whose life improved after participating in the program. I decided to try to enroll, but when I arrived at the training center, there was a sea of women already waiting to enroll. Fortunately, I was selected to join the program and began classes in October.

At the beginning, I was very shy and frustrated because my health was poor, but the atmosphere at WfWI made me feel at home. There was no segregation, women were respected and made to feel secure.

The trainings have opened my mind to new ideas, particularly our discussions of household financial management, savings, and women’s decision-making.

I began to apply the advice I received from my trainer, such as how to make merchandise attractive to customers, to my work selling kasiksi,a local banana-based drink. I also joined a rotating credit group with several of my classmates, which has enabled me to grow my business. My income is increasing little by little, and I have been able to provide food for my family, pay tuition fees for my children, and increase my savings to $100.

Through WfWI, I also received training in agribusiness and learned how to grow various crops and to make my farming efforts more sustainable through techniques such as composting and growing hedges and trees to prevent erosion. I currently grow squash and amaranths near my house to feed my family.

I am already improving my life and that of my family, and my husband is very happy to see my success. He works with me to help sell my products. I am happy that my family lives off of my income, and I am now respected by my neighbors.

My relationship with my husband has also been strengthened by this. For example, after learning about how women can stand up for their rights, I talked with my husband about making our common-law marriage official. He agreed with me, and we are currently planning to have an official religious ceremony by the end of the year.

Several weeks ago, I had the chance to use the advice I had received through WfWI about women’s rights and the law. My brothers-in-law, who were jealous of my increasing income, tried to expel my husband and me from the family house. We decided to consult a local chief, who told my husband’s relatives that it is our right to live in the house. We agreed to split the family house in two to accommodate them.

In the future, I want to buy a plot of land with my savings and build a house of our own. This way, my husband will have space to reopen the beauty salon he used to run. I am grateful to WfWI for all that it has done for me, and all the advice I have received. My involvement in the WfWI program was a salvation to me.”

Women for Women International believes that lasting change can only be achieved when women have access to both knowledge and resources.

On a one-year programme, women learn job skills and receive business training so they can earn a living. Women become confident, independent and productive, embracing their importance in rebuilding their families, their communities and ultimately their nations.

Join Women for Women International for the talk at the International Slavery Museum at 1.30pm on Saturday 8 March 2014. No booking required. Click here for details.

We’ve been privileged to have Rianne working with us since September. Here’s what she has to say about her experience:

“My internship at the International Slavery Museum.

Hello, I’m Rianne, I’m 21 years old and I’m from Holland. For the final year of my Cultural Heritage study, we had to find an internship to put the theory we’d learnt to the test. Since I was curious to find out more about museums outside of Holland, I started to apply for an internship abroad. This is when I came across Liverpool and the International Slavery Museum.

A museum dedicated to the history and legacies of the transatlantic slavery was a completely new concept to me and what better way is there to finish a study than by learning something new to help! So I tried my luck and sent an e-mail. And I was lucky: after months of looking for an internship, the International Slavery Museum opened its doors to me and I became a member of the International Slavery Museum’s lovely education team for five months.

The main project I worked on was the development of a new education session for primary school pupils about one of the legacies of transatlantic slavery: Human Rights. In an interactive and informative way we hope to teach the young pupils more about the importance of Human Rights and the importance of protecting those rights for all. The session will hopefully be launched in September.

Besides working on this interesting project, I also got the chance to take a look behind the scenes of the museum’s new exhibition Brutal Exposure, The Congo while working with the Exhibitions Department and I attended interesting meetings and lectures which showed the influence of transatlantic slavery and its legacies across the globe. The growing attention for this topic shows that there is a need to learn and understand more about slavery, both in a historically and contemporary context.

It was a great experience to see how the museum contributes to that. I hope to work with the subject of transatlantic slavery again in the future. For now I would like to thank all the wonderful people. I’ve met while working in the International Slavery Museum for making this internship an adventure I’ll never forget.”

]]>Win tickets to a private view of two new exhibitionshttp://blog.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/2014/01/win-tickets-to-a-private-view-of-two-new-exhibitions/
Tue, 21 Jan 2014 13:57:02 +0000http://blog.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/?p=4152

We’ll pick our lucky winners at random and notify them on Monday 27 January. Good luck!

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Their Spirits showcases the work of internationally acclaimed Jamaican artist Laura Facey.The centrepiece is a spectacular cottonwood canoe featuring 1,357 resin figures. The figures represent enslaved Africans transported to Jamaica during the slave trade. Facey’s work communicates their resilience, strength and unity.

Brutal Exposure: the Congo is an exhibition of photographs considered to represent one of the first human rights campaigns.Taken by missionary Alice Seeley Harris in the early 1900s, they document the exploitation carried out under King Leopold II’s regime in the Congo Free State.